“Every day in America, 10,000 teenagers catch an STD, 2,400 young girls become pregnant, and 55 young people are infected with HIV.”
Those sobering stats are from a documentary airing on TLC tonight, April 9, at 10 p.m. / 9 central. Let’s Talk About Sex is directed by James Houston, a fashion photographer who came to the U.S. from Australia and Europe and was aghast at our screwed-up sexual culture. Sex is everywhere, used to sell everything, but we don’t talk about it openly and honestly with our teenagers. “Young people in America don’t know the risks associated with sex, and because of that, American teen pregnancy and STD rates are among the highest in the industrialized world,” says Houston.
Says one teenager in the film, “People are in denial — teachers, parents. They’re like, ‘No, no, teenagers aren’t having sex. They can’t, or the shouldn’t.’ But we do and we are.”
I look forward to watching the whole thing. If you don’t catch it on TLC, you can order the video starting on April 12.
The documentary was produced in collaboration with Advocates for Youth, a nonprofit focused on adolescent sexuality. The group is launching a new sex-ed campaign to coincide with the documentary’s debut on TLC.
Another trailer for the film:
And yet another, featuring the world’s biggest condom:
This is the latest in a series of Saturday GINK videos about population and reproduction (or a lack thereof).
Also check out:
- Teens say: Give us for decent sex ed!
- Is MTV the best method of teen birth control?
- Bristol Palin and ‘The Situation’ talk up safe sex
